In the fourth year of the Qing calendar of the Great Song Dynasty, in September 1044 AD, the 100,000 troops of Western Xia invaded Qingtang and were bravely repelled by the Song army.

Li Yuanhao retreated to the mouth of the river, and after reorganizing the soldiers and horses, he withdrew to Zhuo Luocheng.

He couldn't continue to attack Qingtang anymore.

First of all, the city of Lanzhou was defeated, although the loss was not much, thousands of people were killed by muskets and artillery, but the morale of the army fell to the bottom.

Secondly, because Lanzhou City was not taken as soon as possible, the news had already spread, and both the Song Dynasty and the Great Song Dynasty knew about the situation.

Qin Fenglu's previous transfer envoy was Wen Yanbo, and now the new transfer envoy is Yang Kai, the former deputy transfer envoy.

In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, there were 15 roads in the country, of which there was only one road in the entire northwest, which was Shaanxi Road.

During the Song-Xia War, the imperial court divided the original Shaanxi Road into five roads: Qinfeng, Yanyan, Huanqing, Jingyuan, and Yongxingjun.

At the same time, a five-way transfer envoy, a pacification envoy, and a solicitation envoy were set up, which were under the unified command of Fan Zhongyan, the envoy of Shaanxi Road Transit Strategy.

Among them, the three roads of Yanyan, Huanqing and Jingyuan are the west of Yan'an and the east of Guyuan in later generations.

Qinfeng Road was the southeast of Lanzhou and northwest of Baoji, including Tianshui City, Dingxi City, Tongwei County, Huining County and other places, bordering Lanzhou controlled by the Qingtang regime.

Due to the geographical location of Qinfeng Road to the west, when the Song and Xia wars began, they did not become Li Yuanhao's attack point, so it has always been relatively peaceful.

Only the three roads of Yanyan, Huanqing, and Jingyuan participated in the war.

Yang Kai had no chance to fight before, and he had long wanted to make meritorious contributions, and when he heard that Western Xia had started the war again, he immediately made a decision and immediately dispatched troops to help.

Unexpectedly, before the army set off, they heard the news that the victory had come from below.

This stunned him.

But it's already about to go to war, so it must not be coaxed.

Immediately, he personally led more than 30,000 troops, from Qinzhou, which was the seat of governance, that is, Tianshui City in the later world, to the west to Xishi Town, that is, the area of Yuzhong County under the jurisdiction of Lanzhou in the later world.

At the same time, he also learned of the attack on Lanzhou, and also gathered 50,000 men and followed the Huangshui east to the mouth of the river.

This estuary was called Kaluo River in the Song Dynasty, and later generations were the Zhuanglang River in Yongdeng County, which was the confluence of the Zhuanglang River and the Yellow River.

The Great Song Dynasty and the Qingtang regime formed a pincer offensive from the southeast and southwest directions against Li Yuanhao, who was in the direction of Zhuo Luocheng in the north, that is, in the direction of Yongdeng County.

made the newly defeated Li Yuanhao even worse.

Although the total number of coalition troops is about 80,000, even if you count the more than 10,000 people in Lanzhou City, it is almost less than 100,000, and Li Yuanhao's current strength wants to be.

The problem is that Li Yuanhao was stunned by the battle in Lanzhou City, and he didn't know where he lost, so he didn't dare to fight again.

Therefore, they can only retreat in the city.

On September 8, after returning from Lanzhou to Zhuo Luocheng, Li Yuanhao's mood was already very bad.

He really wanted to cut people in a rage, but he knew that being angry at will when the morale of this army was weak would only make the upper and lower centrifugation, so he could only endure it.

In Zhuo Luo City, Li Yuanhao's face was gloomy as if he could drip water, and the clan generals such as Fang Dang and Fei Ting were not there, and he would only discuss with a few henchmen and the Yeli clan when he had a meeting.

In the City Lord's Mansion, everyone gathered in the hall, and everyone did not speak. The atmosphere was clearly silent.

In fact, they could predict that if the Song army attacked on a large scale, it was possible to be defeated.

After all, if the Song army dares to reform with such fanfare, it must have something to rely on.

The firearms battalion is their reliance.

The reason why Li Yuanhao attacked Qingtang was actually to try the strength of the mysterious firearms battalion.

It's just that what everyone didn't expect was that they lost so badly.

50,000 people besieged Lanzhou, but they were defeated.

If it weren't for Li Yuanhao's deployment of another 30,000 people at the mouth of the river to respond, there would be another 20,000 people guarding Zhuo Luocheng. I'm afraid that in terms of the extent of the rout on the front line, I am afraid that it has been wiped out by the Song army and the Song Army.

It's a shame!

"The King."

After being silent for a long time, Zhang Yuancai said in a hoarse voice: "At least in this battle, we have indeed found out the reality of the firearms battalion, they are only a few thousand, and they can block the siege of our tens of thousands of cavalry." ”

"Yes, fortunately, we didn't directly attack the Song State, otherwise in the face of so many of their firearms battalions, our cavalry would just be sent to death."

"Their firearms battalion can kill people from a distance of one or two hundred paces, although it is not as far as artillery, but our artillery is extremely difficult to turn, and once they attack in the rear, the artillery will have no effect on them at all."

"We must also find a way to get such a weapon, otherwise, we will never be able to defeat the Great Song."

After the chatterbox was opened, Yang Su, Yeli Wangrong, Yeli Yuqi and others spoke one after another.

Essentially, this battle is to test the reality of the firearms battalion.

If the situation is not good, retreat immediately, and if you find that you can fight, notify the Liao State to hammer the Great Song Dynasty together.

It's just that what made Li Yuanhao collapse was that they originally thought that they would not be able to retreat at most, but they didn't expect to be directly crushed by one or two thousand people.

Losing too quickly and too much is really unacceptable.

But this also reflects from the side that the firearms battalion of the Great Song Dynasty is indeed strong, if they don't have muskets, it is obviously a very irrational thing to fight hard with the Great Song Dynasty.

"Whew."

Li Yuanhao took a few deep breaths, turned his head and asked Ye Liyu: "Have the soldiers below seen clearly what they are using?" ”

"It's a long tube that shoots something out of it, and I suspect it's a small artillery."

Ye Li Yu begged for a moment and said: "The craftsman said that artillery can shoot out shells after gunpowder is burned, and if the cannon is reduced to the point that everyone can hold it in their hands, and the shells are also reduced a lot, it should be like this." ”

The principle of muskets is the same as that of artillery, when the firearms battalion fights, the steel guns in their hands will produce a lot of gunpowder smoke when they shoot, so that when the white smoke is thick, it can even drown the entire firearms battalion.

Therefore, the Western Xia army would only see a white smoke shrouded in a white smoke from one or two hundred paces, and there would be a thumping sound from time to time, and then the comrades around them would fall one after another.

This is very similar to the scene when the artillery position fires the cannon, which also emits a lot of dense fog, except that the person has a small steel pipe in his hand.

Therefore, when the soldiers below reported the situation layer by layer, these people were actually able to think of what the principle of the musket was.

"You mean, that thing is a shrunken artillery?"

Li Yuanhao was shocked.

"Yes."

Ye Li Yu nodded.

Li Yuanhao suddenly thought quickly in his mind.

Artillery, as the king of field warfare, has been imitated by the Western Xia and Liao people since its inception.

Due to the serious corruption of the Great Song army, they really bought a lot, which were disassembled by craftsmen and studied thoroughly.

Now it seems that Da Song has gone ahead of them again.

"If it's just like artillery, does that mean we can copy it too?"

Li Yuanhao asked hurriedly.

Yang Su said: "If you give the craftsmen a little time, it should be feasible. ”

"Hmm."

Li Yuanhao nodded slightly after hearing this: "If I have such a firearm in Great Xia, then I am not afraid of the Song Kingdom." ”

Zhang Yuan reminded: "King, the matter of firearms still needs to be discussed again. Now that Liao has given us a lot of sulfur, whether it is a cannon or this new long tube, we can do it in the future, and the problem now is now. ”

"Hmm"

Li Yuanhao groaned, the problem at hand is that Qingtang and Da Song have already sent troops.

This is not something that he can solve by withdrawing his troops and going back.

Because people are about to attack Zhuo Luo City, it is a question whether they will let him go back, let alone whether there will be a chance to make firearms in the future.

Although Li Yuanhao thought that his family had a long command in field battles, he set up the remaining cannons on Zhuo Luo City, and the enemy should not be able to fight in. But the question is what if the Great Song Dynasty is angered and the firearms battalion attacks from the border in all directions?

Therefore, the top priority now is to appease the anger of the Great Song Dynasty.

This is diplomacy.

Li Yuanhao immediately said: "Then I will immediately send someone to report to Emperor Song, saying that all this is a misunderstanding." ”

"The King."

Zhang Yuan smiled bitterly: "If our army is only a small defeat, maybe they will still be afraid, but."

"But what?"

"But we have all been defeated by one or two thousand people, and the Great Song Dynasty will definitely look down on us, and if we put it on the table again, the Song State will inevitably put forward various conditions."

"What do you mean?"

Li Yuanhao looked at him gloomily, although he also wanted to send troops, but he blamed Zhang Yuan's instigation.

Zhang Yuan didn't notice Li Yuanhao's gaze, and lowered his head and fell into deep thought.

It's really a question of initiative.

If they go to the table first, then the initiative is in the hands of Da Song, and Da Song will inevitably take care of them at that time.

The best situation is that the Great Song Dynasty issued an order to punish them first, so that they can find out the attitude of the Great Song Dynasty, and the initiative is in the hands of the Western Xia, and the Western Xia side can respond with wording.

It doesn't matter if you put your posture a little lower, what you are most afraid of is the threat of force from the Great Song Dynasty.

So after Zhang Yuan pondered, he said cautiously: "The minister thinks that for the time being, I will send someone to contact Yang Kai, the transfer envoy of Qin Fenglu, to express our meaning, and hope that he can withdraw and leave first." As for the guys, without the support of the Great Song Dynasty, they would not dare to attack our Great Xia. ”

"Is that so?"

Li Yuanhao asked.

"Yes."

Zhang Yuan nodded.

"Hmm."

Li Yuanhao said: "So be it. ”

At that moment, he immediately sent an envoy to Xishi Town, hoping to communicate with Yang Kai.

Yang Kai's side had not received the will of the imperial court for the time being, and he did not dare to make decisions on his own, so he did not reply immediately, but reported to the imperial court.

It has nothing to do with whether the generals are willing to fight or not.

It's purely that the Great Song Dynasty court has never given front-line generals the opportunity to make assertions.

"Will be outside, the monarch's order will not be affected" at least in the Great Song Dynasty.

So far, there is only one person who has such a convenience and can make decisions without going through the consultation of the imperial court, and that is Fan Zhongyan, the current Tongzhi of the Constitutional Yuan.

Therefore, in the face of Li Yuanhao's desire to communicate, he directly refused, continued to garrison troops in Xishi, and also communicated with several other transport envoys.

The Shaanxi Road Economic Envoy is a temporary position, and after Fan Zhongyan returned, there was no one to hold it, and the five-way transfer envoy was at the same level.

Zhao Jun thought that Liaoxia was going to attack again this time, and he originally planned to let Pang Ji go, but now it seems that the situation can't be beaten, so he will wait and see for the time being, so Yang Kai's superior is the imperial court.

But it didn't take long for Yang Kai to be entangled, and the order of the Constitutional Yuan was quickly issued, just like what he chose now, ignore Li Yuanhao and continue the confrontation.

In late September, seeing that there was no movement on Yang Kai's side, and the Great Song Dynasty court did not take the initiative to come over to apply for punishment, as if he continued to fight to the end, Li Yuanhao suddenly became impatient.

The Great Song Dynasty was strong and could maintain military confrontation forever.

He can't.

Even if they have become a little richer in recent years, the 100,000 soldiers will eat horses and chew their horses, and if they do not go back to grazing, in the long run, the national strength will inevitably decline.

Therefore, Li Yuanhao could only obey Zhang Yuan's wishes, and immediately sent an envoy to Liao for help.

But far water can't save near fire.

What's more, the power of the firearms battalion has been demonstrated, and as long as the Liao side is not stupid, it is impossible to end up, and at most it is to help mediate.

So at this time, Li Yuanhao was also quite difficult to ride a tiger.

The main thing is that I can't figure out the attitude of the Great Song court.

Let's fight.

The other side does not seem to have mobilized a large army to garrison the border.

Let's say no.

But there is no intention of retreating.

I don't communicate with him either.

This made Li Yuanhao uneasy and didn't know what to do.

As a last resort, he could only continue to send people to communicate with Yang Kai, and his wording became more and more humble every time.

From the very beginning, it was just a misunderstanding, and I hope Da Song doesn't take it to heart.

To this day, there is even a faint meaning of apologetic.

It's a pity that Yang Kai has always adhered to the attitude of ignoring, refusing, agreeing, communicating, and not meeting, and does not give Li Yuanhao any face.

Now offense and defense are in shape.

In the past, the Great Song Dynasty had to encircle the Western Xia to balance the Liao State.

Therefore, in the early days, Song Zhenzong and Zhao Zhen had to be kind to Western Xia, for fear that they would collude with Liao.

Now the Great Song Dynasty has discovered that not to mention that you are a little Western Xia, even if it is the Liao Kingdom, you have to obediently cut the land and pay compensation in front of my Great Song Dynasty military god Fan Zhongyan, and dare not be the leader.

Coupled with the propaganda of newspapers and Di Bao, since the Battle of Lanzhou, the self-confidence of the Great Song Dynasty has been picked up step by step.

Both the people and the officials have great confidence and high fighting spirit.

After a few years of recuperation, many people think that the current Great Song Dynasty has long been strong enough to easily deal with the Western Xia and Liao, and the voice of going to war to destroy the Liao and the Western Xia is noisy.

If it weren't for Zhao Jun's plan to wait for the army to be thoroughly reformed in the past two years and greatly improve the army's combat effectiveness before launching the war to destroy Xia and Liao, I am afraid that he would probably conform to public opinion and start a big war.

Therefore, when the Northwest Army faced the Western Xia, its attitude was quite arrogant, and Yang Kai did not take Li Yuanhao in his eyes at all, and continued to hang Li Yuanhao like this in accordance with the will of the imperial court.

This situation was not until two months later, in December of the fourth year of Qingli, after another military meeting, Li Yuanhao had to start thinking about a plan to formally apologize to Zhao Zhen.

Because at this military meeting, Fang Dang, Fei Ting and other generals complained to him one after another.

These generals said that they were subordinate generals, but in fact they were all chiefs of various tribes, such as Fangdang Qiu Hu was the leader of the Fangdang tribe of the party, and Fei Tinggu was the leader of the Feiting tribe.

Li Yuanhao's so-called army is actually a military operation led by his party Xiang Weiming tribe and leading the rest of the party Xiang clan tribes to burn and loot.

If the war goes well, these tribes will naturally obey their words and listen to Li Yuanhao's leadership.

If it doesn't go well, then naturally everyone has different intentions.

So this time the complaint is said to be a complaint, but in fact it is still to put pressure on him.

After all, the leader of the Dangxiang tribe was already reluctant to fight the Great Song after several defeats with the Great Song Dynasty.

This time I came out thinking that I was just fighting Qingtang.

Now that the Great Song Dynasty is involved, coupled with a long-term confrontation, it will only cause serious internal friction, and they and the Great Song Dynasty cannot afford to consume their national strength, and the cattle and sheep of various tribes have to be sold to the Great Song Dynasty.

Once the Great Song Dynasty is angry and cuts off the mutual market, the tribes will have to drink the northwest wind this year. Therefore, everyone wants a truce and is not willing to fight any longer.

Li Yuanhao was already difficult to ride a tiger, but now that he was like this, he naturally couldn't hold back, so he could only give up the initiative and directly sent someone to Yang Kai to express his hope to communicate with Zhao Zhen.

He also expressed his hope to communicate sincerely with the Song Dynasty.

There is something to do in the field, it took more than 6 hours to drive, the update is late, I am more yards tonight, I hope to finish my work early tomorrow and go back early, uncomfortable.

(End of chapter)